Despite the script's reliance on familiar cliches, the film never feels like an exploitation thriller, as we genuinely feel for these kids and the life they've fallen into.
Coming out from behind Spike Lee's camera, Ernest Dickerson has instantly arrived at the forefront of the new wave of black directors. His film aims for the gut, and hits it.
The movie generates a real tension in its closing passages, as it shows its characters trapped in a plot that seems to be unfolding according to its own merciless logic.
